Lost in This Dance
by Kerantli
Summary: Hermione disappears from the Wizarding world, only to land back on the Weasley's doorstep years later.  eventual H/Hr
1. Chapter 1

A/n – now, this is going to read weird, but its the start of something that I have started, and part way towards finishing. It is also part of Hermione's Harmony's Miserable Melody competition.

**I do not own any of the Harry Potter universe or characters, if I did, Hermione would not have ended up with Ron, but with Harry.**

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><p>Darkness and cold. That is what Hermione had become used to in the past couple of years after she had left Hogwarts. There was nothing for her to do but sit in silence as she waited for the sound of heavy boots to cross her path. She didn't even have her wand any more. Not that she would have been able to use it, every last ounce of her strength had been taken from her. She could barely lift her arms to eat most days, almost force fed by the man she had once loved. She knew he loved her, under the alcohol that constantly flowed through his blood system. But the love wasn't enough to stop her from flinching each time he raised his voice at everything that dared get in his way. She hadn't been in the outside world in months, only having the same view through the only window in the room she was confined to.<p>

She never thought she would end up like this, not after Hogwarts and how strong she had been while there. She was trapped in the relationship and she couldn't breathe. She could feel the anger bubbling in her blood as his heavy footsteps became louder on the stone floor, her breath quickening as the door opened. He said nothing as he came up behind her and placed his hand on her shoulder, yet she still flinched and tried to move away. His grip tightened on her shoulder, causing her to bite on her tongue to stop herself from making a noise. Hermione could tell he was smirking, just by the way his other hand caressed her cheek before a resounding slap echoed around the room.

Still no words were spoken towards her, her cheek stinging where a red marking was surely making an appearance. A hiss ripped through her throat, pain shooting through her strained neck as he pressed her head back to admire the red mark. Pure hate swam in both their eyes, while adrenaline pumped through Hermione's body. If he wanted a fight, she would give him one. She was done with being his punching bag, with being someone to use as a toy. Mustering up all the bravery she had, Hermione pulled out of his grasp and turned to face him. Words were not needed to convey how she felt, it was plain on her face. Her body shook as she took in his murderous look, a brief moment of panic gripping her.

He stalked towards her as she backed away, looking around for anything that would help defend her. She refused to back down, blindly reaching behind her and grabbing the first thing that came to hand. She felt a wave of magic hit her and glanced down at what she was holding. Seeing that she was holding her wand, Hermione felt a slight bit better holding it as he came closer. Pointing the wand at him she cast the first spell that came to her, channelling all her feelings into it.

"_Stupify_!"

The bolt of red light shot out from the tip of her wand, hitting him straight in the chest and knocking him off his feet. Hermione looked down at him, debating over what to do. Hermione crept around him and fled the house, the weight of the relationship lifting from her shoulders with each breath she took. Collapsing against a wall, Hermione finally let her tears fall. Thankful to be out of there, she had nowhere to go. Turning on the spot she Disapparated, hoping to get as far away from the life she led as was possible.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/n – at the moment I have this bit written up, and the start of the next chapter, but please don't hold your breath for that one to be up pretty quickly, I have other things I'm working on and only get to do this one when I have a spare second or so.**

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><p><em>The click of heels vibrated down the empty stone corridor, the sound of laboured breathing just audible above it.<em>

"_You're utterly stupid Hermione." She chided herself, slumping against the wall. "You should have known he wouldn't show up."_

"_Who wouldn't show up 'Mione?" She heard a male voice ask, looking up into the bright green eyes of her best friend, her breath catching in her throat as he smiled down at her. _

"_Just thought someone had changed Harry, but apparently I'm still under their radar." She spoke bitterly, kicking her heels off. _

_Harry sunk down next to her, placing his hand over hers, rubbing his thumb over the bony knuckles,_

"_You may be under his, but there are others out there that don't think that, I'm pretty sure of that one." He spoke truthfully, looking at the floor as she rested her head on his shoulder. _

"_You're meant to say that Harry, you're my best friend." She winced slightly as she said the last words, feeling Harry shift._

"_Come on, we best get back anyway, after all, it is Ron's big day isn't it?" Harry spoke gruffly, shrugging her head off his shoulder._

_Hermione just nodded, watching him as he stood and made his way back to the large room where the party was in full swing._

"_I'll be in soon Harry, I just need to do something first." She mumbled, placing her shoes back on her feet as she too stood. Harry inclined his head, not turning back as he heard her footsteps get further and further away from him._

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><p>Hermione shot up in bed, swallowing dryly as she recalled the last memory of Harry that she had. The room was sparse in decorations; there was nothing personal scattered on the top of the drawers or on the table where the mirror rested. Hermione heaved herself off the bed, scratching at the side of her face and brushing her hair back behind her ear as she woke up properly.<p>

"Still on my mind after ten years have passed since that night... Hermione Granger, you are pathetic." She told herself, shaking her head and moving out of the bedroom to the bathroom down the short hallway, wondering what the black haired boy, nay man, was doing at that moment.

"Probably asleep with a wife and kids by now." She scoffed, flicking the shower on as she stripped out of the oversized Quidditch top she had stolen from Harry long ago and the long sleep shorts, stepping into the warm water and letting it run down her body. She tilted her head back to let the water soak it through as she closed her eyes, sighing and making a snap decision to go back to London.

"There is nothing here for you any more Hermione; it's time to move on, or rather, go back to the life you had before you left." She whispered into the glass shower. She washed her body and hair before she stepped out, being careful not to slip on the floor as she grabbed a large towel, its course fabric scratching at her skin.

Looking at her reflection in the mirror, she took in the dark circles beneath her eyes and the sallow pallor of her skin, worrying at her lip,

"What will they think of me now? After everything that's happened?" She questioned her reflection, watching droplets of water slide down her small frame, landing on the towel and being soaked up. Shaking her head and spraying the mirror with water she moved back to the bedroom, plucking out a long sleeved top and a pair of worn-out jeans, pulling them on without letting her flesh fully dry. Casting a glance around the room, she made her way over to the top drawer pulling out an engraved box.

Dancing her fingers over the top of it, Hermione opened the lid pulling out the wand she had stolen from Bellatrix, feeling the magic start to flow back through her body, almost scaring herself at the power coursing through her fingertips.

"We had this at age eleven?" She asked aloud to the empty room and cast an experimental spell at the small amount of clothing she had kept with her at all times, wincing as they packed themselves into the battered suitcase rather forcefully.

"Well Hermione. It's now or never." She whispered as she looked at the ground, picking up her suitcase she quickly Disapperated from the cold room.

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><p>Harry prowled around the kitchen on Number 12 Grimmauld Place, pacing the same route he had paced since Hermione had gone. His usually vibrant green eyes dull as they flitted from one unneeded appliance to another. He ran his hands through his hair distractedly as he heard a faint pop coming from one of the rooms on the first floor.<p>

"Ginerva if that is you; I meant it when I said leave me alone!" He shouted out, trudging to the room where he had heard the noise.

"Last I checked Harry, I wasn't my Husbands sister." Luna's dreamy voice floated back towards him. "However, I do have some news that I do recommend sitting down for." She added, waiting for the raven haired man to sit before joining him.

"Ronald and Molly don't know I'm here, so before you go rushing to them to see if it's true, keep an open mind." Luna cautioned, placing her hand on his. "She is back though."

Harry looked at Luna sharply,

"Don't lie Luna. She has been gone ten years. Why would she come back now?" Harry snarled at the blonde woman, locking his eyes on hers. "ten fucking years of nothing and she turns up out of the blue." He muttered low, standing from the sofa. Luna watched him, biting on her lower lip as he paced the room.

"Maybe she had a good reason Harry. We don't know though. She turned up the other day and since then has been locked up in Ginny's old room." Luna tried to reason with him, not getting anywhere as he spun to face her.

"Go Luna, just leave please. I want to be alone right now." He told her, pointing towards the door and disappearing up the stairs. Luna sighed and quickly left after glancing after him.

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><p>Hermione looked around at the onetime comforting room she had been bullied into staying in. Curling up onto the bed she pulled out a small photo album from the chest of drawers, thumbing through it at the smiling faces of herself, Harry, Ron and Ginny before stopping on one picture of her and Harry sat in the Gryffindor common room huddled over something. Looking closer at the picture, she saw the image of Harry twitch every so often as if he was laughing. Wracking her brains she tried to remember that day, her head shot up as she heard a knock on the wooden door.<p>

"C...Come in?" She called out almost questioningly, sighing in relief as Ginny walked through the door.

"Mum told me you came back." Ginny stated coolly, eyeing the brown haired woman. "Why?"

Hermione cringed and looked down at the plain bedspread,

"I... It was time. Ginny, I know I left suddenly, but I had to." Hermione spoke, her voice barely a whisper but still echoing around the room.

"That explains nothing Hermione. You left your best friends and your family!" Ginny's voice sounded deafening to the older woman, "Hermione, you have no idea what Harry was like! Still is like even!"

"No amount of apologies will ever make up for what I did. But I just couldn't stay here. I had to get away Ginny. I'm sure you can understand that." Hermione pleaded, finally locking her eyes on the youngest Weasley. Her once long red hair now cut to brush over her shoulders and clothed in expensive robes that accentuated her curves and a glittering ring on her left ring finger. Ginny just snorted.

"You couldn't be happy with the fact that your life didn't go the way you wanted it then. Running away from your problems. That's not the Hermione Granger I knew." She spat, moving closer to the bed. "The Hermione I knew was loyal, and stuck by her friends through thick and thin. This Hermione I'm seeing isn't one I'm liking one bit."

Hermione just shrugged, dropping her head again,

"I can't change the past Ginny. But I also can't explain why I ran. I needed to come back though, even if it was just a snap decision." She mumbled, "I was... I needed..." Trailing off Hermione wiped small tears from her eyes.

"What you needed and still need is a sharp hit to the head Hermione. Mum was crushed when you never came back. Hell, I don't know why she has let you stay here. Too soft for her own good." Ginny sniffed, flicking her hair back behind her shoulder. "You better buck up your ideas though, lest Harry decides to show up." Ginny watched Hermione nod, taking it as her cue to leave.

"Oh, and by the way, I am glad you are back, you're a lot better than some of the witches I know." Ginny's voice softened as she gave Hermione a warm smile and left the room. Hermione let out a long sigh curling up into a tight ball on the bed and letting the trapped tears fall at last.

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><p>Harry shifted outside the Burrows front door, debating over if he should knock or walk straight in as he had been told many times by Molly. Sighing he lifted his hand, only to end up knocking on Ron's head.<p>

"Sorry Ron! Though your head does sound like a door" he joked feebly, stepping into the long hallway.

"No worries mate, Mums in the kitchen with Luna." Ron replied, pointing to the back of the house. Harry nodded and looked at Ron,

"Where you off to anyway?" He asked, eyeing the red haired male.

"Gotta help George at the shop. He said it was getting busy, but we'll catch up later?" Ron queried as he shot out the door, leaving Harry stood alone.

"Yeah... I guess so Ron..." He spoke to the empty hallway. Turning and following his nose to where the fresh scent of bread lingered.

"Harry!" Molly cried out, rushing towards the raven haired man and pulling him into a tight bear hug.

"C...Can't breathe Molly." Harry gasped, gulping in large quantities of air as she let go of him.

"How are you Harry?" This was Luna, her blue eyes boring into his, setting him on edge.

"I'm okay Luna, just thought I'd pop round for some of Molly's cooking." Harry lied easily, glancing back towards the hallway and at the stairs where he knew Hermione was. Luna quirked her eyebrow at him, before turning back to Molly.

"How is your guest? Gotten anything else from her yet?" She asked calmly, flicking her eyes over to Harry who was listening intently. Molly just shook her head, placing some biscuits on the table and steering Harry to sit down.

"Quiet as she was when she first got here. Not even Ginny could get her to talk much." Molly stated. "However, now that Harry is here, maybe he could try?" She queried looking at the green eyed man. Harry just looked up at the elder,

"You really think she'd want to talk to me? Considering she was the one that left." Harry questioned with his voice low. Both women looked at him sharply.

"Honestly Harry. You were her best friend. You still are." Molly told him, "Now get up those stairs and talk to her right this instant." Pinning him with a glare both women watched him leave the kitchen and disappear up the stairs, sharing a knowing look with each other.

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><p>Harry shuffled along the landing, shifting on his feet as he got to the door where he knew Hermione was. Running his hands through the messy hair on his head, Harry knocked on the door, waiting for the woman to open it up.<p>

"Harry?" Came a startled voice from behind him, causing him to turn and cast his eyes on a familiar yet unfamiliar face.

"Hermione..." Harry stalled, running his eyes down her skinny frame as she stood there looking lost and haunted. "Do you...?" he asked her, gesturing to the door.

Hermione just nodded, opening the door for Harry and waiting til he went in before following him, her eyes travelling down his body as he stood in the middle of the still sparse room Hermione was living in.

"One question... Why are you here?" Hermione asked him, knowing he could say the exact same to her at any second.

"I'm here because you walked out on us Hermione, walked away from Ron, from your family, from me." Harry said the last part quietly, turning to face her. "Do you know what happened to this family after you left?"

Hermione shook her head, collapsing onto the bed she was closest to, shuffling back to rest against the wall.

"We were all worried sick. You told me you had to do something; that something shouldn't have been to walk away." Harry continued, pacing around the room. Hermione watched him, waiting for him to strike and start shouting. Harry sighed and sat next to her on the bed.

"I'm not going to shout. There is no point, the fact is, you're back and that is all that matters right now." He looked at her, his land lying just next to hers as he moved back to the wall. Hermione looked down at their hands, inching hers into his as they sat in comfortable silence.

"Why did you leave Hermione?" Harry asked, shifting on the bed to turn to face her.

"I... I needed to. That night, hell the months leading up to that night, I had thought that the guy I was casually seeing was hinting at something more. Apparently, it seems like he didn't though. I needed to leave because I was fed up of being overlooked, classed as the brain box of the golden trio." Hermione spoke quietly, small tears running down her cheeks as she continued,

"You had someone, Ron had Luna, and he still has Luna. I had no one, just people who just wanted to use me to get ahead in their careers." She curled up on herself, resting her forehead on her knees as the tears started to fall faster, splashing down onto her jeans.

Harry rubbed at her free arm softly, pulling her closer to him as she curled into his chest. Her body shook as she let out ten years of pent up hurt, clinging to Harry as he rubbed her back.

"My 'someone' wasn't even proper 'Mione, just some fame-hunting chit that thought I would give her a boost in her modelling career by being linked to 'The Famous Harry Potter'." He murmured, burying his face into her hair and landing a small kiss on the top of her head. She felt so good in his arms, almost as if she did belong there. Harry groaned almost silently, knowing she did belong in his arms constantly, no one else's. Hermione looked up, her face red and puffy and stared into his eyes, looking shocked.

"Y... You're not married to anyone?" She had to ask, having been so sure he would have found someone. Harry shook his head at her.

"No one matched my expectations. I couldn't settle with just any one 'Mione..." Harry trailed off, dropping his eyes from hers. Hermione rested her head on his shoulder, mulling over his words as she calmed down her breath.

"What are your expectations?" She asked carefully, uncurling her hands from his top and stretching them. Harry shifted again, pushing up his glasses thinking before speaking.

"She has to be loyal, smart, beautiful and able to keep me from my 'saving people' thing getting too much." He smiled softly, looking at her again. Hermione's heart had dropped when he had said beautiful, thinking he would never find her beautiful.

"She has to be my best friend, and a part of a trio, and able to get on with my family." He continued; cupping her cheek and lifting her face up to meet his. "Hermione, you are the one that has me had my heart. That night you disappeared... I shouldn't have walked off, I should have followed you. I know that now, and I do wish I had, I have wished that every single day."

Hermione's breath hitched as his lips pressed to hers in a soft kiss, her eyes fluttering closed as he added more pressure, his tongue dancing along her lower lip almost asking for access. They jumped apart as the door crashed against the wall and a sheepish looking Molly stood in the doorway.

"Sorry, we didn't hear shouting or screaming, and we got worried." She told them, gesturing to Luna who was hovering in the hallway just behind her, looking worried. Hermione blushed a bright red that could have given any Weasley a run for their money as Molly backed out of the room, before turning back to Harry who was equally as red.

"'Mione, would you please come back to mine? You can have your own room, I just... I just don't want you to run again, not so soon after coming back." Harry almost begged her, a relieved smile spreading on his face as she nodded.

"Get whatever things you have here ready, I will be back in half an hour, I need to do something first." Harry told her, lifting her off his lap as he moved from the bed. Both missed the warmth of their bodies as they moved away from each other. Hermione looked up at Harry, nibbling on her lip as he moved closer to her once again.

"Don't look so afraid 'Mione, I will be back for you, I promise." He assured her, cupping her cheek again and pressing another kiss to her mouth, feeling her thin arms wrapping around his neck tight as she added pressure, his arms sliding around her waist as his tongue flicked out to swipe over her lips, deepening the kiss as they parted and her tongue snaked out to meet his.


End file.
